“Too intimate.” “Cheers”? Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
But what happens when you reply? “Don’t try to be funny.” Also, reserve the word “urgent” or “URGENT!” for truly dire situations.Abiding by this rule, contends Turk, will cut back on confusion and unnecessary replies. — we can take an extra few seconds to write in full sentences or tack on a “thank you” or “thanks for your help.”Turk supports using emojis provided it’s not a formal context — “they’re basically a digital stand-in for facial expression, after all, and all the tools that we do have to make sure that we’re not misunderstood, we should be making use of.”Turk endorses ending with “best wishes,” “best” and “all the best” — and only these three. Someone who emails like this is trying to show you how busy and important they are. Her suggestion:“Save ‘Dear’ and using someone’s title for more formal situations, such as an official briefing or an invitation.”“You don’t need to keep saying hi every time you email someone on an ongoing thread, particularly if it’s active,” says Turk. Unless you’re a heart surgeon, you really don’t need to be on call all the time.” Avoid annoying — or tempting — people with pings, buzzes or notifications from your incoming emails. Added bonus: By taking an email recess, you’ll be doing yourself a favor, too. Skip the formalities.
And that’s not very polite.” While we can’t control what other people’s actions — if only we could!
“Once upon a time, it may have been customary to treat email like a digital version of a snail-mail letter and to address your recipient with ‘Dear,’” says Turk. Think about it: How have you felt when you’ve gotten an email back from a colleague or manager with only a terse “received,” “agree,” “OK,” or “?” As she puts it, “These emails seem more like a power play.
Her suggestion:“Save ‘Dear’ and using someone’s title for more formal situations, such as a… Wait, what about “yours sincerely”? Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)This post is part of TED’s “How to Be a Better Human” series, each of which contains a piece of helpful advice from someone in the TED community; “But nowadays, most emails, especially in a work context, are more like post-it notes than a lengthy missive.” As a result, it’s OK to open with “hi” and a first name. An overly long or detailed email benefits neither the sender nor receiver.That means, according to Turk, “no waffling, no jargon, no small talk. Follow along as writer and comedian James Veitch narrates a hilarious, weeks-long exchange with a spammer who offered to cut him in on a hot deal. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
You do not have to ask after your recipient’s health every time you email them.” Just be sure to include all the facts needed so the recipient can reply without having to ask you questions first.“There’s a line where brevity crosses over into rudeness,” Turk warns. “OK for friends, but too casual for a professional context.” “Kind regards”? They pop up in our inboxes, and standard procedure is to delete on sight. “Yours”? TED.com, home of TED Talks, is a global initiative about ideas worth spreading via TEDx, The Audacious Project, TED Books, TED Conferences, TED-Ed and more.
“Once upon a time, it may have been customary to treat email like a digital version of a snail-mail letter and to address your recipient with ‘Dear,’” says Turk. We’re expected to be always contactable.” She adds, “The only way to buck this trend is to start setting boundaries. Don’t write a full sentence because it will get chopped off,” says Turk. Suspicious emails: unclaimed insurance bonds, diamond-encrusted safe deposit boxes, close friends marooned in a foreign country.
“But nowadays, most emails, especially in a work context, are more like post-it notes than a lengthy missive.”As a result, it’s OK to open with “hi” and a first name. She says, Turk says, “We can check email anywhere and anytime, but instead of feeling free, we feel trapped. “Just a bit pompous.”Turk’s least favorite way to end an email: “Thanks in advance.” She explains, “It’s incredibly presumptive — you can’t thank someone for doing something before they’ve agreed to do it … [When you close your email with it,] you’re basically saying, ‘Hey, by the way, you have no choice whether to do this or not.’”“Summarize your email in a few key words. “Too formal,” she says. “If you’re having a back-and-forth conversation, treat it as such.”“When it comes to email, good etiquette is not about the fancy flourishes; it’s about respecting other people’s time,” says Turk.